If there's one thing we've learned from the Barrett-Jackson hype machine, it's that if you want to sell an old car for ungodly sums of money, it helps to have a good yarn to tell about it. Which is why we're somewhat shocked to see this Superbird fail to attract enough interest from bidders at the Atlantic City Classic Car Auction this past weekend.

The 1970 Plymouth Superbird you see above was formerly the property of the Environmental Protection Agency, which used it in some seminal air pollution tests, racing the car down a runway against a jet to measure emissions. The story is a fascinating piece of history, in that this particular Superbird was a product of NASCAR legend Ray Nichels, the chief race car builder for Chrysler during the company's prolific late 1960's period.

Yet that wasn't enough to push bidding past $175,000, so the car will go home to its current owner, Brian Chaffee of E-Muscle in Middlefield, CT. Chaffee spent three and a half years restoring the unique muscle car after acquiring it in 2006, missing the tail end of the historic run-up in muscle car prices in the process.

While the collector market has corrected itself during the past few years of economic uncertainty, the Hagerty Price Guide still lists #1 condition '70 Superbirds packing 440 power as $182,000 cars. So the top bid in Atlantic City was a few thousand light even for a car without such provenance.

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In '71, I worked for a Chrysler/Plymouth dealer in Mpls. We had one of these, covered with decals over bright red paint. At that time, insurance companies were doubling their rates for muscle cars. The car sat in the showroom for months, eating up floor plan interest. It finally sold below invoice (and holdback) with much relief to all. One day a guy brought in an almost new all red 440 Challenger that his insurance company fainted dead away when they found out. I recall the rate was $2200, over 40 years ago! He traded it in on an all red 318 Duster coupe, saving $800 on insurance. I bought that Challenger below wholesale and babied it for 35 years. I gave it to my son, who has almost shined the paint off of it.
It's fun to see that car next to a current model. It's absolutely tiny in comparison.

My stepfather had purchased a Superbird new in 1970 and he had said the same thing about the insurance being very expensive for it. I believe that he only owned it for a couple of years and ended up trading it in on a Chevrolet pick-up which I believe that he said actually ended up being a little quicker than the Superbird.
I sure wish he would have held on to it. It is amazing the kind of money those cars are bringing now.

I question if the editor or writer are old enough to remember muscle cars directly. Depending on the era they were born in, it is possible both the writer, and editor only equate "muscle car" with gas guzzling destroyer of the earth, and life. They are unable to tell the difference between a ford cobra, and a mach one. Another question is, Has The ability to individualize by craftsmanship been schooled out of them. One could make the argument that growing up riding in boxes, has retarded their comprehension that there are different brands of automobiles.

Superbirds and Daytona's had many engine options 440 4bbl, 440 six pack, or 426 hemi. Bottom line the market is not full of speculators with money, buying anything close to correct. A car needs to be done right, especially a MOPAR. If this car was done with more accuracy it would have met it's reserve. Pontiac, and people give Rush Limbaugh grief. Calling one of the most iconic MOPAR's a Pontiac is a major sin in the car world!